New move to get Augustus to stay on as Worcester manager

By Nick Kotsopoulos TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF

Saturday

Mar 29, 2014 at 5:00 AMMar 29, 2014 at 1:48 PM

WORCESTER — Days after City Manager Edward M. Augustus Jr. informed the City Council he will not seek the long-term appointment as the city's chief executive, two city councilors are broaching the idea of extending his tenure by renegotiating his employment contract.

District 5 Councilor Gary Rosen and District 4 Councilor Sarai Rivera are co-sponsoring an order for Tuesday night's City Council meeting in which they are calling on the council's Municipal Operations Committee to renegotiate Mr. Augustus' present employment contract, which expires Oct. 3.

Mr. Rosen said most city councilors have not had the opportunity to express their opinions in favor of or in opposition to Mr. Augustus serving as city manager beyond his nine-month contract.

He said he and Ms. Rivera decided to file the order to give those councilors who wish to voice their opinion an opportunity to do so.

"Ed Augustus is the city manager of Worcester," Mr. Rosen said Saturday. "The previous City Council hired him; the present council does not have to hire him again. But, if he agrees, it can extend the length of his employment contract beyond nine months. And the leadership void created by the departure of Mike O'Brien will be filled long beyond October.

"At the very least, at Tuesday's Council meeting, I intend to take advantage of this first and final opportunity to publicly state why I think that Ed Augustus should be encouraged to stay on as city manager of Worcester," he added.

Calling it one of the most difficult decisions he has made, Mr. Augustus said as much as he enjoys being the chief executive of the city he grew up in, his decision not to seek the long-term appointment was more about keeping his word.

When he was hired as a short-term successor to City Manager Michael V. O'Brien, who left City Hall Jan. 6 to take a job in the private sector, Mr. Augustus said he would return to his job at the College of the Holy Cross when his nine-month contract ends.

He also signed a contract in which he agreed not to seek an extension of the term of his contract nor participate in any search or recruitment process for the city manager's job conducted by the City Council.

Mr. Rosen said neither he nor Ms. Rivera see their call to renegotiate the manager's contract as a reflection of Mr. Augustus' character or integrity.

"It simply is an issue of renegotiating and rewriting a contract," he said. "That is done many times, on a daily basis, in all arenas across this country, when both parties agree to take another look at the original contract.

"On occasion, people should and do change their minds. That often leads to mutually agreed upon changes in the stipulations of an employment contract. Character and integrity remain intact, even in Worcester," Mr. Rosen said.

Mr. Augustus could not be reached for comment Saturday, though he made it clear on Wednesday that he would not pursue a longer-term appointment.

At least one city councilor has also said it is "not palatable" for the City Council to approach Mr. Augustus about staying on longer as city manager now that he has made his decision to leave when his contract expires.

"We can't go there," said District 2 Councilor Philip P. Palmieri, chairman of the City Council Municipal Operations Committee and one of the more vocal supporters of Mr. Augustus. "He's made that decision; I respect that. It's a tough loss for the city, but we're moving on with the search."

Mr. Rosen is one of three city councilors who weren't on the previous City Council that hired Mr. Augustus. The other two are Councilors-at-Large Morris A. Bergman and Michael T. Gaffney.

The only member of the previous council who did not support Mr. Augustus' hiring was Councilor-at-Large Konstantina B. Lukes.

Mr. Rosen served two terms with Mr. Augustus on the School Committee and he said he was thrilled when the previous council appointed him to the job.

"Mr. Augustus knows Worcester, its people, schools, neighborhoods and challenges," he said. "He has the qualities the city needs in a city manager: intellect, character, integrity, leadership skills and a vision for our city.

"Unfortunately, his response to some initial criticism of both him and the City Council was to negotiate and sign a nine-month contract and to state that he would not be a candidate for the permanent/long-term position," he added. "He was sincere in agreeing to those stipulations. Certainly, Mr. Augustus does not need to apologize to the people of Worcester for liking and even wanting the job."

Contact Nick Kotsopoulos at nicholas.kotsopoulos@telegram.com. Follow him on Twitter @NCKotsopoulos

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